Better Exposure by Ei

Better Exposure by Ei - July 2026 Scholarship Essay

For a girl who shutters and stumbles over her words, science has always been my strong suit. Instead of reading aloud to the class or exposing my feelings and inner thoughts on a blank canvas, I enjoy picking apart the world around me. My college is based around an open curriculum that allows students to explore their many interests, requiring no courses other than two writing courses across their four-year degree.

I barely escaped never having to take an English class again, but last semester I took a writing class about the power of the written word and literature for those who are incarcerated, exposing what often isn’t seen in the media. I initially took the class because out of all the other writing courses, this one seemed the least about hidden meanings and metaphors from texts older than the United States itself, and as an aspiring physician, I wanted to learn more about an underserved community that I hadn’t had much exposure to. The class, Fugitive Letters, was full of only upperclassmen. Our professor invited former and current inmates in to talk to us, to explain the corruption in the correctional system and the darker history of our country. We spoke to former Black Panthers, anarchists, and murderers whose actions and beliefs went against my own. As a Buddhist, I have been taught to think that all violence is unnecessary and wasteful, so speaking to those who were imprisoned for acts of violence made me realize that Buddha would’ve also acknowledged that violence is unavoidable because life inevitably is suffering.

Our final assignment was to author our own critical literature analysis and research paper on a topic related to the carceral system. I chose to study the mental and physical impact the carceral system has on all women, starting broadly, then narrowing in on women who were pregnant, Black, Hispanic, or struggled with mental health. I used firsthand accounts to build the general narrative on the long-standing health impacts that prejudice, neglect, and sexism have on women who were incarcerated.

While I don’t enjoy writing as much as science, my research forced me to be on the ground and better understand my community. I want to be an advocate for all patients, and this class challenged my own philosophies while growing my interest in a community that I otherwise would not have been so deeply exposed to.